ST. PAUL — The Minnesota State Fair is partnering with Minnesota FFA and local agriculture commodity groups to connect food back to farms for more than 1,400 Minneapolis and Saint Paul public school third-graders. These students will experience Urban Ag Day 2019 on May 14 and 15, a field trip event designed to teach young students that food does not come from the grocery store or refrigerator, but from farmers and their fields. Both days feature an up-close look at live animals, including swine, beef and dairy cattle, dairy goats and sheep. The students will also learn about modern farms through a model farm set-up and machinery. AgCentric will also be on hand to talk about future careers in agriculture. Then, guided by FFA youth leaders, the third-graders have the opportunity to experience several agricultural education stations, which provide insight on what cows eat and how their diet is similar to the human diet, how the water cycle works, GMOs and gene editing, and much more.
“The Minnesota State Fair is proud to work with Minnesota FFA and other key agricultural organizations for the fourth year in a row to provide a unique experience that helps metro-area third-graders connect food and the farm,” said Michelle Butler, education manager with the Minnesota State Fair.
FFA students and alumni from Dassel-Cokato, Glencoe-Silver Lake, Hancock, Morris Area, Randolph, West Central Area, Como Park High School and Tracy Area will provide their expertise and knowledge of agriculture to students who may not otherwise get to experience modern farming.
“The Urban Ag Day event was born out of a desire to bring the farm and the farmers to the city to help share the story of production agriculture,” said Natasha Mortenson, community relations at Riverview, LLP. “It is hard to understand all the work that farmers are doing to produce safe and wholesome food if you are not able to get out on a farm.”
The students will wrap up the day with lunch made up of the major food groups to bring the lessons to life in their food.
Special Thanks to Urban Ag Day Partners:
AgCentric
Ag Country Farm Credit Services
Como Park High School
Dassel-Cokato FFA & FFA Alumni
Glencoe-Silver Lake FFA
Hancock FFA
Midwest Dairy Association
Minnesota Ag in the Classroom
Minnesota Beef Council
Minnesota Boer Goat Association
Minnesota Pork Producers
Minnesota Turkey Growers
Morris Area FFA
Northarvest Bean Growers
Randolph FFA
Riverview, LLP
Spark-Y
Stevens County FFA Alumni
Tracy Area FFA
University of Minnesota – CFANS Animal Science Department
West Central Cattlemen’s Association
West Central Area FFA
— Minnesota State Fair
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